Josh Harrison to play in World Baseball Classic

Josh Harrison will play on Team USA in the World Baseball Classic, Adam Berry notes. Harrison replaces Matt Carpenter, who is dealing with back tightness.

Harrison joins Andrew McCutchen on Team USA. Other Pirates participating in the WBC include Francisco Cervelli (Italy) and Starling Marte and Gregory Polanco (Dominican Republic).

Harrison won’t start for Team USA, which has Daniel Murphy and Ian Kinsler at second, Nolan Arenado at third and a bunch of talent in the outfield. Instead, he’ll bounce around various positions, as he did with the Pirates a few years back.

As Berry notes, Harrison being away from camp for a few weeks allows the Pirates extra opportunities to evaluate players like Phil Gosselin and especially Alen Hanson. Both players are on the fringes of the roster, and Hanson in particular is out of options. Max Moroff, Chris Bostick, Erich Weiss and Adam Frazier could receive a few extra spring plate appearances as well.